"We lost the WTC final as well as the World Cup final to Australia" - Wasim Jaffer on India's biggest threat at the T20 World Cup
Former Indian cricketer Wasim Jaffer has earmarked Australia as India's biggest threat at the T20 World Cup. Like the Men in Blue, even the Aussies have been flawless in their group so far with three wins from three games and have qualified for the Super 8 stage.
India have some painful memories against Australia in finals, having lost the World Test Championship (WTC) final as well as the World Cup final last year. Jaffer feels they have the right balance for the conditions to challenge the Men in Blue.
Speaking in a video on his YouTube channel, here's what Wasim Jaffer had to say about Australia:
"We lost the WTC final as well as the World Cup final to Australia. And the way they are playing in this T20 World Cup, they are the one team that India need to be wary about. They have the fast bowlers, all-rounders and Adam Zampa is bowling well. The batting is also explosive."
India and Australia have been the standout teams for Jaffer so far. South Africa have also played well, but the former cricketer has a bit of a doubt about their ability to handle pressure during the latter stages of the tournament.
Wasim Jaffer on the importance of captaincy in T20 cricket
Wasim Jaffer believes captaincy is among the most important aspects of a team in T20 format. Because of how volatile the format is, Jaffer reckons the margin for error for captains is that much smaller. That's why he hailed the kind of success that captains like Rohit Sharma and MS Dhoni have had in the IPL with five titles each.
On this, he stated:
"Absolutely not (on whether captaincy in T20 cricket is overrated). In fact it is so crucial. If you see in the IPL, the teams that have won multiple titles have had great captains like MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma, David Warner and Gautam Gambhir. It is a fast game and you have to decide quickly. It is one of the most important things in this format."
Rohit Sharma is set to face some stiff assignments as a leader in the latter stages of the tournament and he will need to find a way if he wants to end India's 11-year drought for an ICC Trophy.